Child&#39;s food placer



July 8, 1952 RUTH ADELE RAINES NOW BY DEGREE OF COURT RUTH ADELE GIBBONS CHILD'S FOOD PLACER Filed Aug. 21, 1948 Patented July 8, 1952 GHILDS FOOD PLACER Ruth Adele R'aines, Los Angelcs, Calif.; now by decree of court, Ruth Adele Gibbons Application August 21, 1948, Serial No. 45,542

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a self-feeding implement for a child to use in conjunction with a spoon.

More specifically speaking the article to which this invention pertains is a table implement having a handle which carries at one end an arcuately bifurcated pushing element having at each side a flat plate portion or ear, said ears cooperating both to collect and guide the food on the childs plate onto a spoon which the child can use to convey the collected food to his mouth.

Among the objects of this invention i to provide, for children's use, a spoon loading table implement which is so shaped as to cooperate in a better manner with a conventional spoon by reason of being contoured more arcuately to match up with the rounded end portion of the latter; to provide a spoon loading implement having side portions better adapted for use in pushing semi-liquid foods onto the spoon; to provide a table implement better suited to teach a child coordination when bringing the spoon filling or loading implement into a fitted over or matched relation to the spoon used.

Also, from the cultural viewpoint, important objects of the invention are to teach children good table manners, to avoid using their fingers as a direct means for pushing the food onto the spoon.

Furthermore it is among the objects of the invention to promote childrens health by causing them to derive more pleasure from eating and to provide them with an eating implement that they can use with greater natural ease.

The table implement provided by this invention is sanitary and easy to clean, being of a smoothly rounded contour, without corners and all in one piece, which may be beautifully silver plated and streamlined in a modern fashion.

- Other objects, advantages and features of invention will hereinafter appear.

Referring to the accompanying drawing wherein is shown a preferred, reduced to practice embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the device.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device, a fragment of a conventional spoon being included, in dotted lines, in the view in order to illustrate the cooperation of the implement therewith.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the article in the operative position for pushing the food onto a spoon or similar food-conveying implement.

Fig. 4 is an elevation looking at the right hand end of the structure of Fig. 3.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the entire 5 implement shown is made of a single piece of strap metal (or metal substitute) having a handle portion 5 and a food-loading portion 8, the

latter portion being formed by progressively broadening one end portion of said strap metal and shaping the broadened part into a pair of spaced apart twin ears I separated by an arcuate notch 8 dimensioned and shaped to conform to the rounded outer end 9 of the bowl of the conventional teaspoon delineated in broken lines in Fig. 2. Owing to the progressive manner in which said strip is broadened, as aforesaid, no angular recesses are produced in any part thereof, but a streamline, easily cleaned surface results.

Said broadened end portion 6 is laterally (downwardly in the operative position) deflected in relation to the adjacent upward arched part it of the handle, so as to place its edge portion l l in a position for use in scraping the food from the survace of the plate or serving dish as the implement is moved in a direction to load the spoon While the back side of the bowl of the latter is resting upon the surface of the plate or other food container from which the child is eating. The two arcuate parts 8 and In of the implement cooperate to add to its utility, the arcuate part 8 of the broadened end portion 6 efiiciently guiding the food onto the spoon, while the adjacent arcuate part ID of the handle clears the rim portion of a plate or dish while the remaining portion of the handle is conveniently held in a horizontal position.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modification and equivalents which fall within the scope of the subject matter claimed.

I claim:

In an implement for pushing food along a horizontal surface onto a spoon, a body comprising a vertical wall having a horizontal bottom edge,-

said body having the major portion from the bottom edge upward arcuately curved in a horizontal plane to conform to the curvature of the outer end part of a spoon, the medial part of said body well being integrally extended to form an upwardly and rearwardly directed relatively narrow and vertically curved handle.

RUTH ADELE RAINES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,135,906 Ludwig Apr. 13, 1915 1,347,307 Thomas July 20, 1920 1,948,592 Nelson Feb. 27, 1934 2,243,236 Walsh May 27, 1941 

